Light in the Water (2018) (Lis Barlett, 2018) USA

Reviewed by Kaio Fadul Farkouh at the Santa Barbara Film Festival 2019

The world as we know is a very tough place to live. Every single day we face judgments based on who we are, how we look like, our actions and our beliefs. This did not start yesterday, we have been living like this for a long time. We can see some sign of changes, more acceptance and less judgments, less injustice and more equal rights. But we still far from our liberty to be who we are.

“Light in the Water” is a documentary directed by Lis Bartlett. In this documentary we go back to 1982, and we find out more about LGBT community and how they dealt with competitive sports. How they manage to be accepted in a World, where they had and still have to fight for justice and equal rights. We follow a swim team in West Hollywood, called “West Hollywood Swim Club”. And how they managed to do a comeback on those who did not accept them.

Sports, at first, we think about something that would bring people together. Because anyone can play or do, you just need to have the desire to do it. However, back in 1982, people never felt comfortable and they were not accept in college teams or any other team. Based on that the LGBT opened a swim club, where the LGBT could join and they could be really who they really are. And this is one of the triumph of the documentary, it shows exactly the importance and the outcomes that the the “West Hollywood Swim Club” for all LGBT community. The started from the bottom and and they even made “The Olympic Gay Games” in San Francisco.

The exclusion of different communities still a huge thing in usual days. This documentary shows, how they overcame difference to build a community themself. We as human beings, need to stop looking at the difference of each other, because at the end we are all equals. The documentary gives strength to those, who thinks cannot achieve something even you are part of the LGBT community. It shows how a bunch of people went over their struggle, to make a family. Because that was what the “West Hollywood Swim Club” was, a family. Where people would meet their boyfriends or girlfriend.